Childhood trauma has long been known to raise a child’s odds of developing depression and addiction later on. Now, a small but intriguing new study links these risks to specific changes in the brain, finding that disruptions in …

Many people fear that mere exposure to prescription painkillers like Vicodin or OxyContin will set them down the road to addiction. But new research on the response to opioid medication suggests that most people don’t …

While the Supreme Court was making health care news in Washington, voting to uphold the Affordable Care Act on Thursday, a smaller gathering at the United Nations was discussing another, completely non-binding document that could …

Addiction is typically characterized as a disease by experts and government officials. Yet, unlike most known diseases, the treatment of addiction is not based on scientific evidence nor is it required to be provided by people …

The rate of babies born to mothers who use prescription painkillers during pregnancy has risen sharply over the last decade. Though the long-term effects of such drug exposure are uncertain, true harm can come of labeling these …